“Millions of people continue to need help around the world after the media spotlight fades,” said Emergency Relief Coordinator Valerie Amos. “These allocations are about saving lives. I hope that governments and others will provide more funds to help those caught in these hidden emergencies.”

The CERF is a rapid-response fund established by the UN General Assembly in 2006 to enable more timely and reliable humanitarian assistance to those affected by natural disasters and armed conflicts.

Under the latest allocation, CERF will provide funding to UN agencies and humanitarian partners to reach people in need in Afghanistan, Algeria, Burundi, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Haiti, Liberia, Sudan, Uganda and Yemen. Emergencies in these countries are considered to be ‘forgotten’ or ‘neglected’ with limited financial support from donors.

The allocations are based on the severity of humanitarian need and an analysis of funding levels. Emergencies in Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Sudan and Yemen will receive $17 million each to help millions of people affected by conflict, displacement and natural disasters. In 2012, Afghanistan received less than 50 per cent of the funds needed to carry out humanitarian work.

A third of all CERF funds are earmarked each year for underfunded emergencies to help improve the balance of global humanitarian aid distribution. Since 2006, $900 million have been allocated from CERF to neglected crises in more than 40 countries.

A second round of allocations from CERF’s underfunded emergencies facility will follow in July 2013.

CERF is funded through voluntary contributions from Member States, non-governmental organizations, regional governments, the private sector and individual donors. For 2013, donors have so far pledged more than $383 million, bringing the total amount contributed to CERF since March 2006 to more than $3.2 billion.